Vegan Ricotta and Tomato Layered Pasta Bowl

It’s apparently National The Laidback Vegan’s Tofutti Week! My last post was these unbearably delicious “flaky donuts” with blackberry-cream cheese filling and lemon glaze, and today I’m sharing another recipe I developed for Tofutti: the ricotta and tomato layered pasta bowl.

This dish has something of a strange story, and while I try to contain my relatively irrelevant memories on Tofutti’s page, you guys are not so lucky.

I used to dance… a lot. I took classes most days of the week and competed for shiny trophies; the whole mess. Eventually I converted to a full-time classical ballet dancer, but when I was still tap dancing–flailing arms and everything–and maxing out my jazz hands potential, I ate a lot of this dish called “Italian casserole”. This little Italian fast food joint right behind my dance studio was a quick dinner, not as awful for us as Taco Bell or whatever, and it was de-lic-iousde-lish-usdee-lish-shush really good.

I knew what I liked, dammit, and got the same thing every time (dammit): the Italian casserole and another Italian classic: the iceberg salad with ranch dressing. The Italian casserole was something is rarely–if ever–made in Italy, but that didn’t change the fact that it was perfect every time: al-dente penne tossed in rich, herbed ricotta, all topped with a simple marinara sauce. Sometimes I’d mix them all together; sometimes I’d keep them separate as layers on each bite. Either way, the flavors blended so beautifully, a nod to such classic Italian flavors; a tart acidity from the tomatoes cutting through the creamy ricotta. Mmm.

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Hi! I’m Cheryl.

I'm the writer and photographer at 40 Aprons, a Whole30 + paleo blog with personality. Everything changed when I did my first Whole30 and went from feeling meh to ah-maz-ing! So I'm here to make eating healthy easy by sharing delicious paleo recipes for food-lovers. In my other life, I work as a freelance digital marketer, business/blog coach, and designer. ?
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